N. Chicago Schools May Get $1 Million

Gov. Jim Edgar signed into law Wednesday evening a crucial bill that sends nearly $1 million to the foundering North Chicago school system.

While the money won't plug the $1.6 million hole in the district's budget, it may be enough to keep the district's hopes up and its doors open until the legislature approves the education budget.

As long as the money is guaranteed, the district would be "looking good," said Pamela Johnson, North Chicago school board president.

"But if this is one of those things that is appropriated but not allocated, or if the actual funds fall short-as state funding has in the past-we still are in trouble," Johnson said.

Because of the estimated $1.6 million operating deficit, the school board voted in March to dissolve the district and send its 4,300 students to five neighboring school systems.

"I don't want to continue to paint doom and gloom. If that money is what we really are going to get, I'm happy and maybe we will be able to re-evaluate our current situation," she said. "I just want to make sure all the numbers we are getting are exact and guaranteed."

In signing the bill, Edgar cleared the way for education officials to distribute state aid to school districts with low-income students based on the number of those students counted in the 1990 census.

The measure is expected to bring an additional $980,000 to the troubled North Chicago school district and about $2.5 million to Lake County's other public school systems. And if another measure-Edgar's $100 million boost in education funds-passes the legislature, North Chicago would get even more money, boosting their total aid increase to $1.2 million.

It was unclear Wednesday whether North Chicago would receive the $980,000 in low-income aid money in one lump sum this fall, or in phase-in payments.

A phase-in could be used to lessen the blow to districts that would lose state aid because of shifts in the distribution of low-income students around Illinois. For example, the Chicago public school system stands to lose about $37 million, based on the 1990 census figures, because that district's perentage of low-income students has dropped since the 1980 census.

State Supt. Robert Leininger said the use of the 1990 census numbers will be crucial for districts such as North Chicago, where the number of students in poverty has risen during the last decade.

"The low-income count will shift state aid funds from districts serving fewer children from poverty to those experiencing an increase," Leininger said.

The 1990 census figures have not been used until now because state education officials were awaiting final tallies, said Lugene Finley, a spokesman for the Illinois State Board of Education.

"It's about time we got some positive news for North Chicago," Johnson said. "But people should be careful what they read. We don't have the money in our hands yet, and it still could be $400,000 short of what we need."